Tomorrow Comes Today
by Pokka
Summary: Team B centric band Au. When Harvar's band starts drawing attention, a 'battle of the band' style contest is spawned- just in time for them to compete and ,hopefully win, in order to save Harvar's mother's restaurant and to land the record deal of a lifetime. Will Harvar, Kim, Jackie, and Kilik be able to pull it off, or go down in flames? [Done for Reverb 2015]
1. Chapter 1

_**Hey there and thank you for reading my contribution to the Soul Eater fandom's first ever Reverse Resonance Bang, aka Reverb! Shoutout to my wonderful artist Ash (rebornfromash on tumblr), and to my lovely betas Wynnie (xwynn) and K (earth-shrines)! Enjoy~**_

* * *

There was some older lady opening for them the night Harvar began to lose his sanity. Tall and sort of pretty, if he remembered right, but she had a certain glint in her eyes that made his skin crawl, no matter how smooth and sensuous her voice may have been. With Ox chattering in his ear while he tried to check the tuning of his guitar, he barely took notice as the bar's crowd gave a small, polite applause as the woman's performance ended.

She came backstage with an annoyed sneer curling at her thin lips, the look only enforcing Harvar's initial comparison of her likeliness to that of a snake. "Good luck; another bunch of no-good drunkards to vomit to your tune." Harvar didn't have time to open his mouth before Kim very nearly shoulder checked the woman into the wall, her bright green guitar dangling over her torso.

"Oops, sorry! I didn't notice the 'Beware of the Bitch' sign, my bad!" She called as she jogged backwards, a bright smile turning up her pierced lips. As she came into view of the crowd, raccoon beanie precariously perched on her head as if held by magic, the audience roared to life. Whoops and cheers raised into a cacophony of sound. Medusa, he thought the woman's stage name was, simmered in annoyance. Kim cupped her hand around her ear and waved the other up, signaling for the crowd to get louder. As the crowd cheered, Kim shot a wicked grin at Medusa, relishing in the crowd's approval. The woman stomped away with a low hiss.

Harvar distantly heard the noise swell again as Kilik joined Kim on stage, whooping and hollering at the crowd. He closed his eyes, fingers skimming over the strings and frets of his own guitar, going through the motions of their songs as he cleared his head. The stage was for their music, for the beat of the drums and the thrum of the bass, not the rumbling in his stomach and his hankering for Taco Bell.

"You gonna join us here on earth, spaceman?" A voice cut through his calm, bringing the rumbling of the crowd crashing back down to his ears. Harvar opened his eyes to find Jackie, her bass strapped to her chest and half of her hair styled up in a bun.

"Never left, unfortunately," he muttered, rolling his shoulders as they started towards the edge of the stage, making sure to stay in the shadows and out of the audience's sight. He squinted out at the crowd, impatiently blowing a stray strand of hair from his eyes. "Are these kids even old enough to be here? They look like they're twelve."

Jackie peeked around him, dark eyes flashing in the stage lights. "Yeah, maybe if you'd pay more attention to Ox, you'd know that they locked up the booze so the youngsters could attend." She cut him a look from the corner of her eye, a knowing smile twitching into place. "Or do his tales of romantic woe not interest you?"

"As much as I adore hearing about how his new love is 'as eternal as the raven's feather'-"

"Whatever that means," Jackie muttered, fully aware of Ox's knack for strange euphemisms.

"Exactly, so excuse me if I tune him out after he tells me anything important." Harvar adjusted his guitar's strap, eyes once again focusing on the crowd. "You should get out there. They're starting to get antsy."

She shook her head, flipping a piece of her hair over her shoulder as she moved past him. "Make sure to put on a good show," the bassist said over her shoulder. "Gotta show these kids what we're about, yeah?" Without waiting for an answer, she jogged out on stage, hands up with a megawatt smile on her face. Again, the crowd and its accompanying noise surged in excitement. All they needed now was him.

Harvar jumped up and down in place, shaking his limbs loose and preparing to feel the constant thrum in his bones. He reached up, cracked his neck, rolled his shoulders once more, and took to the stage.

They exited the stage almost an hour later, blood still singing with adrenaline and their joints holding the faint echo of the musical vibrations. Kilik hooted, punching a fist in the air as Jackie tossed a water bottle to Harvar's awaiting hands. The drummer grinned widely as he threw his hands out to his sides, as if his excitement was physically impossible for him to contain as he said, "That was awesome, guys! Did you see how packed this place is?"

Kim plucked Jackie's water from her hand as she slung her arm around her shoulders, taking a swig with a small smile on her face. "Hell yeah this place is packed! Have you heard us?" The guitarist said with no small amount of pride, her face shimmering dimly with sweat and her eyes bright.

Jackie snatched her drink back, hastily chugging the rest of the bottle before adding, "Ox probably had an aneurysm though, you all know that, right?"

Kim waved her off, leaning more of her weight onto her girlfriend's shoulders. "When doesn't he freak out over something he didn't plan?" She said, winking conspiratorially at Harvar. Before he could reply though, a very pissed manager was fuming at his side.

"Awl, shit." Kilik muttered, lowering himself down beside a stack of instrument cases, resigned to their collective fate.

"What in the hell was that?!" Ox yelled, face red clear up to his hairline. "Do you two realize what could've happened up there? Without practice, no less?"

"Cmon, Ox, lay off-" Kilik started from his spot on the floor, willingly throwing himself under fire for the sake of his bandmates. How noble, and incredibly stupid.

"Lay off!?" He hissed, vein throbbing from it's place in his neck. "They could've gotten hurt, or- or God knows what else, and you want me to 'lay off'?!"

A thick silence settled itself over the crew, Ox's face slowly returning to it's normal coloring. It took about .5 seconds for Kim to snap out of their collective trance and pounce, wrapping their manager up in a hug that lifted him of his feet.

"Aw! See, guys!? He does care!" She crooned as she shmooshed their faces together, Ox's becoming increasingly redder by the second.

Ox wriggled in her grasp, angrily trying to get away but to no avail. "Shut up and put me down! I have to care! You're my only clients, and I can't have half of you end up in the hospital or in a grave because you decided to do a fucking unsupervised flip off the amps."

"You gotta admit, though-" Harvar started, a small smile curling at his lips.

"It was pretty freakin' cool." Jackie finished as she sidled up alongside him, arms crossed and dark eyes glinting with amusement. Ox finally managed to get out of Kim's hold and dropped unceremoniously to the floor, landing flat on his ass.

Slowly, as if that would help save face, Ox got to his feet and dusted himself off. "Ahem, anyway, I spoke with Hiro."

"And-?" Kilik prompted, gathering himself up off the floor.

The manager looked between the four of them, a small smile slowly creeping to his face. "We're completely sold out."

The room was silent for a beat, for two. Then, they erupted into shouts of disbelief, Kilik and Harvar high-fiving with large smiles on their faces as Kim planted a kiss on Jackie's cheek and slung an arm over Ox's shoulders to pull him into a hug.

"You're kidding, right?!" Kilik asked in his excitement, dark eyes shining behind his glasses.

Ox shook his head with a grin, "Nope. Those kids completely cleaned us out- shirts, demos, bracelets, the whole shebang."

"And there goes the moment," Kim said sullenly, eyes rolling though her lips still held a small smile.

"What?"

"Please, for the love of the band, never say 'shebang' again."

* * *

"C'mon, Mizu." Kilik whined at the bar, tattooed arms draped over it as he rested his face against the cool finish. "Just one shot."

The bartender, Mizune, smiled and shook her head, reaching down into a hidden cooler to produce a cold beer for another patron, all of the underage kids had gone home, and all of their usual customers having taken their place. "Sorry Kilik. You have kids to go home to."

"No, actually, I don't. They're staying with my sister for the weekend, so...can I have a shot?" He flashed her a wide grin, and she reached for a glass with a roll of her eyes.

"Fine, one shot, but only because you guys were amazing tonight."

"Excuse you, we are amazing every night." Kilik said with a boyish grin, gratefully taking the shot in a quick swig before slamming the glass back down with a grimace as the liquor burned its way across his tongue and down his throat. He shrugged into his jacket. "Alright, I gotta go find the others and head out. See you tomorrow, sweetness." He said, leaning his upper body over the bar and planting a quick kiss on Mizune's cheek.

She smiled as he turned to leave and raised her hand in goodbye, calling after him, "You kids be careful!"

* * *

Kim dabbed at her makeup in the dirty mirror, carefully cleaning smudged mascara from under her eyes without disturbing her eyeliner. "So, we're headed over to Harvar's, right?" she asked Jackie's reflection, her girlfriend having perched herself on a discarded amp while she waited, the glow of her phone lighting up her face.

"Huh?" The bassist looked up and made eye contact in the mirror, brown eyes darkened by the shadows of the room. "Oh, yeah. He said Charlie wanted to talk to us about something."

Kim fluffed her cotton candy hair one last time before replacing her ragged raccoon beanie and swiveling around in her chair, the vinyl broken and vomiting up ugly yellow stuffing, all held together with duct tape. "Do you know what it's about? There's nothing wrong, right?" She asked, true concern coloring her tone.

Jacqueline slid off the amplifier, stuffing her phone into her back pocket and shrugging. "I dunno. I don't think there's anything majorly wrong, but.." She shrugged again. "I dunno."

"Hm," The guitarist hummed. Slipping on a worn leather jacket, she stuffed her hands in her pockets and started for the door leading to the main floor. Jackie followed close behind, once again pulling out her phone and tapping away at the glass screen. Kim glanced over her shoulder and furrowed her brows, slowing down so she could see the screen. "What're you looking at?"

A wide smile broke across Jackie's face as she tilted her phone to allow her girlfriend to see. "We're trending! On Facebook and on Twitter!"

"You're kidding!"

"Nope, look!" The brunette said as she shoved her phone into Kim's hand. "It's only locally, but it's something! Ox has to see this! Ooo, and our tag is blowing up on Instagram and Tumblr, too!"

Kim scrolled through the various tweets, all of them exclaiming how amazing their band was and how they were a 'must see'. Pictures of people with their copies of the band's EP scattered through the feed, taking up every other post. "This...this is amazing." Kim murmured, albeit a little breathlessly.

Jackie plucked her phone back and excitedly flipped through a few apps, "We gotta go find the others!" She looked up and gave Kim such a dazzling smile, the guitarist almost melted. She snatched up Kim's hand in her own and tugged her out through the door and into the main bar, "Hey Mizu!" Jackie said with a wave, standing on her tiptoes to see over a group of chittering girls her age clustered around the bar. "Have you seen the guys?"

Mizune pointed straight toward the door, and waved her hand in a vague gesture. Jackie raised a thumbs up that turned into a wave as she began pushing her way through the crowd.

* * *

Harvar stopped briefly by the bar to grab his jacket, and to talk to Mizune. As he slid into an empty stool, he murmured a low, "Hey, sweets."

The bartender gave him a sugary smile and produced a hard lemonade from beneath the counter. He raised a brow at her, and she impatiently blew a stray strand of periwinkle hair from her face. "Figured you needed something to loosen you up."

"And for that you chose Mike's Hard Lemonade?"

She shrugged, absentmindedly cleaning a shot glass with a damp rag. "Well, we don't need you too loose." Mizune winked at him conspiratorially and he groaned, running a calloused hand over his face.

"I've tried to forget that."

"Yeah, well I haven't." She laughed, as she put down the shot glass in favor of a cold beer, which she handed to a random man who leaned in beside him. "You're fun when you're drunk- a little cryptic and very lovey, but fun nonetheless."

"Mizu, please."

She grinned wickedly and leaned against the bar, "Oh, c'mon Harvey, don't you remember the time you ran na-"

"Mizune!"

"Oh, and don't forget what happened with the streetlight-"

"I'm leaving." And he did, rolling his eyes as the mousy woman laughed and drank his untouched lemonade. He had the weirdest fucking friends.

Making his way for the door, Harvar glanced someone short and blonde from the corner of his eye. One of the kids from earlier must've snuck back in. He sighed, turned on his heel, and trailed after them; despite how she harassed him, he still owed Mizune a lot, and taking care of one rebel child was the least he could do.

Just as he almost caught up to the kid, belatedly realizing that she's a girl, someone else beat him to it. His stomach rolled and he grit his teeth. Giriko. That bastard has no qualms about messing with a fifteen year old, and he knew it. Slowly, Harvar edged his way closer, trying to figure out how to smoothly enter the conversation and help the girl out.

"What's a little thing like you doing here?" Asked Giriko, bloodshot eyes roving over her small frame as he gave her a sharp toothed smile.

The girl didn't flinch or back down, if anything the look she gave him was...bored. Harvar was silently impressed. "I'm looking for someone. Now, if you'd get out of my way-" As if on cue, Giriko moved in closer, definitely invading her personal space if he wasn't before.

"Maybe I could help you out." In any other tone of voice, it might've seemed helpful, but it made his skin crawl, let alone what she must have been feeling. Judging by the look she gave him though, any sane person would've backed down, and Harvar could see her foot begin to expected it wouldn't be too long before that foot made direct contact with something soft, sensitive, and very unguarded.

The girl opened her mouth to speak and Harvar saw his chance. Quick and sly as a fox, he slid in next to her and draped his arm over her shoulder, and he felt her automatically tense. "Ah, there you are. I was wondering where you went," he said with a soft smile, pretending to just notice Giriko as he looked up. "Oh, hello?"

From the corner of his eye, Harvar noticed the girl's jaw clenching and unclenching. He silently prayed that she'd have mercy when this was all over. Giriko looked between the two of them and narrowed his eyes. "Who the hell are you?"

"You don't need to know who I am, Giriko. Leave the girl alone, and go fuck off somewhere else," Harvar said pleasantly, as if making a comment on the weather. Any sort of humor drained from Giriko's face, and his lips turned up in a snarl.

"You wanna run that by me again?"

The girl under his arm leaned into him, large green eyes shining under the dim light as she looked up at him. "Don't."

Harvar gave the girl a small smile, but didn't look away from Giriko. "Go. Fuck off. Somewhere. Else."

Then Giriko was very, very close- all sharp teeth and rancid, liquor laced breath. Harvar's nose wrinkled. "Who the hell do you think you are?" The man said lowly, eyes burning with a surprising amount of hatred.

"I'm the guy that's gonna kick your ass if you don't leave my girlfriend alone, you insufferable cumstain."

The girl on his arm laughed loudly and slapped a hand over her mouth, her face turning red in embarrassment.

Giriko's face flushed in anger, and Harvar inconspicuously pushed the girl behind him, hoping to at least keep her out of the way. The man before him sneered as his eyes flicked over him, Harvar expected a punch to come.

Giriko spit in his face.

Without thinking, Harvar's fist snapped out and he felt the satisfying crunch of the asshole's nose under his knuckles.

Blood spurted from Giriko's nostrils, and he hurriedly clamped his hand over his face. Harvar shook his arm out from his jacket, and tore off the short sleeve to wipe the disgusting saliva from his face, choking back the rising bile in his throat as he tried to think of literally anything else. Giriko's buddies dragged him away, one of them snatching up a small stack of napkins from an empty table on the way.

Harvar turned back to the girl, only to find the rest of his band stranding in a semicircle behind her, watching him with smug smiles. The girl finally piped up, arms crossed over her modest modest chest and hip jutted out to one side. "I didn't need your help, y'know."

"Well, that's no way to thank your boyfriend," He said, feigning a wounded tone as he grimaced at the slick glob now on the fabric of his sleeve. He folded it and stuck it in his pocket, making a mental note to violently scrub his face. With bleach.

She rolled her eyes, but a small smile tugged at the corner of her lips anyway. "Thank you." She said. "Are you happy?"

"No, I'm Harvar." He said as he stuck out his hand, "Nice to meet you."

"Maka." She said, her small hand giving his a firm shake. Harvar then took a moment then to introduce Maka to the rest of his band, all of them giving him wide grins for how he'd handled Giriko.

"So," he started as his bandmates drifted away, saying over their shoulders that they'll meet him in the van. "You said you were looking for someone?"

A relieved look flitted over her features as she nodded, "Yeah, I'm looking for Ox Ford and Eruka Ribb?"

Harvar raised a pierced brow questioningly, "Ox and Eruka? I can take you to them, no problem." He shrugged as he stuffed his hands in his pockets, and turning to leave, he said over his shoulder, "C'mon." With that he started meandering through the crowd, glancing behind him every so often to make sure that Maka was still there. As he neared the bar, he ducked through a large group of girls, and slammed his hands on the bar. "Hey, Mizu!" He called over the gaggle of giggling girls. "Have you seen Ox or Eruka?" She nodded and jerked a thumb towards the back.

Once he found Maka again, after having to almost fight for his life to escape the group of girls (who had apparently seen his show), he steered her by her elbow to the back and through the twisting halls. He found Eruka's office easily enough, and rapped his knuckles against the wood. A muffled 'come in' sounded behind the door, and he pushed his way through the threshold. "Eruka?"

A young woman sat behind a small desk, laptop open and a stack of papers scattered off to the side. She looked up at him over the orange rims of a pair of reading glasses perched on her nose, her silver dyed hair tied up in a messy knot. Her fingers stilled over the keys of her computer. "Oh, hey Harvar." She looked back at the screen and resumed typing, the glow of the monitor reflecting in her glasses. "Something you need?"

"Uh, yeah. I have someone who wanted to see you." He pushed the door open all the way and waved Maka in,"Eruka, this is Maka. Maka, Eruka."

The woman looked up, gently slipping the laptop closed, and rested her chin on steepled fingers. She gave Maka a small smile, black piercings dimpling her cheeks as the gesture reached her eyes. "How can I help you?"

"I wanted to ask you about-" Maka cut herself off, bit her lip, and gave a pointed look between Harvar and Eruka.

Luckily, the bar owner took the hint. "Harv, can you give us some privacy?"

The frontman nodded, turned for the door, and offered a backwards wave as he left. "See 'ya tomorrow."


	2. Chapter 2

Less than half an hour since his meeting with Maka and his kinda-almost-sorta fight with Giriko, Harvar and the others veered into The Cackling Sun's parking lot. The building was short and long, though there was a slight distinction to show the difference between the interior levels. A neon light fixture buzzed on its front wall depicting a large, comical looking sun, it's too large teeth on full display as it laughed at the sky. The building was swathed in bright, inviting colors. All of which was due to Harvar's mother's insistence on it being painted twice a year, so the sun and the heat and the sand wouldn't bake away it's luster. Kilik swung the van into one of the many vacant slots in the empty parking lot, and the band piled out into the still hot desert night.

As they came inside, bells tinkled over the door and Harvar's mother immediately stood from a nearby booth, reading glasses falling from her nose to dangle from their chain around her neck. "Harvey!" The woman exclaimed, throwing her arms wide as he bent a little, allowing her to wrap them around his neck.

Harvar's mom, Charlotte, aka Charlie, was a spitting image of her son- all pretty sun-kissed skin and sharp cheekbones and clear amber eyes, though she was a little more than a head shorter. She planted a kiss on his cheek before moving on to the rest, smiling and talking breezily with her 'adopted' children.

"Are you kids hungry?" Charlie's hand, wrinkled and calloused from working, grabbed Jackie's face and squished her cheeks. "You look like you haven't eaten since the last time you came over!" She dropped her hand and turned towards her son, fists on her small hips as she glared at him accusingly. Jackie rubbed her cheeks as she pouted, drawing a laugh from Kilik and Kim.

"Ma, they stopped by last week-"

"Exactly! Go cook some burgers or something!" When he hesitated, she shooed him away with her hands, smacking his behind as if to spur him on the same way one would a horse. "Go! Go! Just because you're grown doesn't mean you can start ignoring me!"

"Yes, ma'am."

Kim laughed at Harvar's retreating figure as she looped her arm through Charlotte's, smiling kindly down at the woman, "So, what did you want us to come by for? Everything's okay, yeah?"

Charlie smile seemed to fade slightly, but she patted Kim's hand lovingly nonetheless, "Of course, of course. I'll tell you everything once you've eaten." She teased as she pinched the girl's side, "Look how skinny you are! Isn't Jackie feeding you?"

"I usually cook, actually. Jackie has a pretty bad habit of burning everything."

"Hey, I do not!" cried the bassist, coming up on Charlie's other side as her cheeks burned with embarrassment. "I made you a cake on your birthday a few weeks ago, and that came out fine!"

"Babe, you burnt the water for the mac 'n cheese last night, and I love you for it."

* * *

Once burgers had been successfully cooked and served, Harvar and the gang squished themselves into a large corner booth, bottles of ketchup and mustard and various other condiments being passed around as their voices clamored together. Kim, Harvar and Jackie took up the middle, with Kilik and Charlotte tapering off the ends. While plates continued to clatter and Harvar began tossing fries in- or rather _at_ \- Kilik's mouth, Charlie stood up and tapped a stray fork against her glass, calling for attention. The table suddenly fell quiet, Harvar's final fry smacking against Kilik's forehead with a small _thwap._ His mother shot him a vicious glare and he immediately sunk in his seat, his friends pressing their lips into tight lines as they tried to suppress smiles. "Alright, I-I think it's time I told you all why I wanted you to come over tonight."

They all sobered quickly, smiles dropping and humor draining. Charlotte wrung her hands worriedly and Harvar reached out and grabbed one, dark eyes searching her face for any indication of what was wrong. "What's going on, Ma?" His thumb ran over the rough knobs of her knuckles, and she gave his hand a thankful squeeze, managing a forced smile that he didn't return.

She took a deep breath, chest puffing out as she closed her eyes and seemed to gather herself. Her eyes fluttered open, her mouth set in a grim line as she said, "I'm losing the restaurant."

"What?" Her son's face contorted with disbelief, his head slowly shaking as if that would wake him up from some bad dream. "T-That's not possible, you own this lot and everything on it, how can you-"

"Actually," His mother sighed, slowly sinking into the booth beside him. "I didn't make the final payment." At Harvar's in incredulous look, she quickly defended herself. "I was going to, but I decided to use most of the money to finish off those medical bills and whatever was left wasn't enough to make a significant change so," she shrugged. "I thought I'd have more time, but some representative of a big time company slipped in a bought the lot out from under us."

"Those bastards," Kilik hissed, hamburger forgotten, a tiny grease spot shone on his forehead and a large crystal of unground sea salt was stuck to his chin.

"Do you know who bought it?" Jackie asked quietly, her hands white with how hard she was squeezing her cup. They'd all come to love Charlotte fiercely; she had quickly became just like a mother to all of them- even going as far as taking over the role completely for some of them.

"Um," Charlotte patted herself down, hands quickly darting into the pockets of the apron tied around her waist. "Hang on a second." She muttered as she slid from the booth and moved back to the table she'd been sitting at when they arrived. They watched as she shuffled through the papers, perching brightly colored reading glasses on the bridge of her nose she read out the name printed on a document. "Ah, Madeline Gorgon of Shinigami Records."

"Shinigami Records?!" They all exclaimed, eyes wide as they looked between each other. Kim shook her head, "You mean _the_ Shinigami Records? As in the largest record label since Eibon?" She shot Harvar a look that told him everything he needed to know. They were _way_ up shit creek without a paddle.

Harvar's heart kicked into overdrive. There _had_ to be way to save this place, there just _had_ to be. Not only was this his mother's restaurant, but her home too. The apartment upstairs had been his family home for as long as he could remember, and something told him she wouldn't be allowed to continue living up there once it was no longer hers. He shoved his plate away, propped his elbows on the table, and tugged his hair loose from it's band, proceeding to scrub his hands through it in frustration as his mom slid back into her seat beside him. Harvar peeked at her through the curtain of his hair as he raked his brain for something-anything- to help her out. "How much?"

"What?"

"How much money do you need to keep this place?"

Charlie looked down at her hands as she gnawed on her lip, "Twenty-five thousand before the end of the month." Harvar closed his eyes and thunked his head against the table. How in the hell were they supposed to make twenty-five _thousand_ dollars in less than...what, two weeks? Even if the restaurant continued on with business as usual plus his cut from their gigs. It wouldn't even scrape the surface. His shoulders relaxed as his mom rubbed his back comfortingly, and he turned his head to look at the girls beside him. Kim and Jackie looked at each other and shook their heads, before looking back at Harvar and shrugging, defeat settled on their features. He flicked his gaze to Kilik and he gave him another empathetic shrug.

"Um, I can dig around for some gigs or contests or openings-?" Jackie asked after a long moment, phone already in hand. "I'll text Ox, too. Maybe he'll have some contacts that could hook us up with a good gig or two."

"Thanks, Jaks," Harvar murmured, just as Jackie's phone rang in her hand- some catchy pop song he vaguely remembered coming into popularity a few years back blaring from the little device. She swiped her finger across the screen with a furrow or her brows.

"Ox?" They all watched on as the little divot above the bridge of her nose smoothed, and an excited sort of spark lighted itself in her eyes. "Are you serious? Wait, wait, wait- _how_ much?" Slowly, a smile grew on her face, and she glanced between everyone at the table. " _Thirty grand?_ " Harvar's heart leaped to his throat as he jerked up, ramrod straight, his mother's hand falling between them in the process and he clutched it like a lifeline. Kilik choked on his drink. Charlotte turned hopeful eyes to her son, and he only squeezed her fingers in response. Jackie nodded as she listened to Ox's chatter on the other end, smile never wavering before saying, "Yeah. Yeah, no, we're definitely in. Thanks, yeah, you too. See 'ya later."

A pregnant silence settled over the table as Jackie hung up the phone. She seemed to move meticulously as she gently set her phone face down on the table and took a sip from her drink. Kim finally exploded- grabbing her girlfriend's shoulders and giving her a good shake as she yelled, "TELL US WHAT HE SAID!"

That seemed to be the reaction she was looking for. The bassist laughed and shook Kim's hands from her shoulders before giving her bandmates a sly look. "Four words. Battle of the bands."


	3. Chapter 3

_**One week until the Battle of the Bands...**_

Harvar and the gang found themselves backstage at some new club a few towns over from Death City, there was some smaller band playing before them, their sound was kind of soft, yet with an upbeat pop-song sort of twist to it. It wasn't too bad, Harvar had to admit. He, Kim, and Jackie sat in a little secluded corner- as far away from the amps and sound as they could, trying to tune their instruments. Kilik paced a few feet away, finger plugging one ear as he talked to his kids over the phone.

"Yeah, I know. I'll come pick you up tonight, okay? I promise. I know, but I had to help Grandma Charlie last night." Kilik sighed, and waved a noncommittal hand at Harvar's questioning gaze. "You guys are having fun with Aunt Zeva, yeah? Good, good, I'm glad." Ox came from side stage and tapped his wrist, indicating that it was almost time for them to go on. Kilik's jaw tensed, and he closed his eyes with a barely concealed grimace. "Alright, well, maybe we can go out somewhere tomorrow. Ice cream sounds great, honey. Okay. I have to go now. I know, I'm sorry. I love you too. Goodnight, sweetheart." Kilik clutched his phone in his hand, teeth clenched in a snarl as he kicked a stack of (hopefully) empty instrument cases over- the plastic clattering to the floor loudly.

The trio stood, instruments slung over their torsos as their drummer paced over, angrily shutting off his phone and stuffing it in the back pocket of his jeans. "Is everything alright?" Jackie asked quietly, gently reaching out to place her hand on his elbow, Kilik's free hand rubbed his undercut irritably.

"Yeah, I guess," he muttered as he swiped his drumsticks from his pocket and fiddled with them nervously, spinning them between his fingers. "The kids are upset that I dipped out on 'em last night and tonight."

"Man, I told you you could bring them to our shows. Ox loves them, and Mizu and Eruka said they'd be fine watching them during our set when we play there, and the twins love all of 'em." Harvar tried for a smile, hoping it would help quell Kilik's worries. "Hell, even Free said he'd love to watch after them- you know how big of a pushover he is."

Kilik cracked a smile, eyes downcast and staring at the drumsticks as they twirled to a stop in his hands. He tapped them together once, twice, three times, before looking up between his bandmates. They were so much more than that, though weren't they? They weren't _like_ his family, they _were_ his family. "Yo, let's just kill this sit so I can go get my kids, yeah?" His friends grinned, and they all piled their hands together in the center of their little circle.

"For Kilik's little crib crawlers?"

"They're eight, Kim."

"For Kilik's little bed wetters?"

"Eight. Eight years old."

"I know nothing about children, Kilik, just humor me here for one second, please."

With an eye roll that could be felt three states over, Kilik said, "For my little bed wetters."

The band repeated the phrase like a mantra, drawing looks from the opening band's manager and various other backstage handlers, before they all threw their arms up and screamed 'bed wetters' before taking to the stage.

* * *

 _ **Five days until Battle of the Bands…**_

"Harvey, where do you think you're going?" Charlie called across the restaurant, her voice easily climbing over the clamor of noise without drawing the attention of most of the patrons. Harvar grimaced, damning himself for not sneaking out the back. While he busied himself with going through various stages of grief and simultaneously trying to untie his apron, his mother made her way over, accusations on her tongue.

With a small cry of victory, Harvar yanked the annoying fabric over his head and held it out for inspection from onlookers- of which there were none. Charlotte stared up at him with her hands on her hips, and the part of his brain that wasn't a) scrambling for a believable lie, b) screaming to tell her the truth, and c) cowering in terror- forcefully brought up an image of a certain little blonde after he punched Giriko. He tried to swallow the rising bile in his throat as he turned to his mother, shoving the thought into the deepest recesses of his mind as he tossed his grease stained apron onto the counter. "I, uh, have to go meet with someone."

"During lunch hour? Seriously? Can't this wait?"

He frowned at the disappointment in her tone, and he scratched at his temple. "Look, Ma, I'm...I'm going to go meet with that Madeline Gorgon."

Almost immediately her features darkened, and her hands fisted in the apron tied around her waist. "Why would you want to meet with her? I'd rather have you sneak off to practice with the band or go vandalize something."

"Really? First of all, it's an off day for everyone, and second- vandalism? What am I, twelve?" Harvar forced a small smile as he shook his head, "No, I just need to talk with her. Get some answers, y'know? All of the interviews and stories I've ever heard about Shinigami say he's a real stand-up guy and he's all about working hard to get what you have." He rubbed the back of his neck, his ponytail brushing against his knuckles with the movement. "I guess I just want to know if his version of 'working hard for what you have' is stealing what others have worked for."

Charlotte's lips thinned into a line, her arms crossing over her chest as she watched her wait staff bustle around from table to table. "Alright," she murmured, hard honey eyes flicking back to her son's face. "Go talk to that bitch witch. Then I want you working the kitchen during dinner rush tonight- no excuses."

With a soft smile that didn't reach his eyes, he pressed a chaste kiss to the crown of his mother's head as he moved for the door. "Yes ma'am. I'll be back in a few hours."

"Try not to commit murder, love you!" she called after him, already beginning to clear a table.

"No promises!"

* * *

Twenty minutes, twelve buttons, and a fight with a hairbrush later, Harvar pulled up in front of a nice little restaurant nestled in the center of a small shopping district. As he walked towards the open arch of the doorway, he nervously ran his hand over his hair, hopefully smoothing down any stray hairs and not look like a total fool. The maître d' was a pretty, tall blonde woman, her hair pulled back into a curly ponytail that swung down to the small of her back. She flashed him a kind smile as he wandered his way up to her podium, "Good afternoon! Do you have a reservation?"

For a moment, he lost his voice as he tried to place her face. She looked so damn familiar, his brows pulled together in thought. "Um, I'm supposed to be meeting someone? Madeline Gorgon?"

He watched as her big, blue eyes scanned down the screen of her tablet, bedazzled stylus twirling between her fingers with ease. "Aha, here she is. It seems she's already arrived, so I'll show you to your seat," he said, tucking the stylus behind her ear, and turning away from her podium with an almost dangerous swing of her hair. "If you'd just follow me." The woman, Anya, he noticed her name tag said, moved away without waiting, heels clicking against the marble flooring.

As they rounded a large fish tank, he broke. "I'm sorry, but do I know you from somewhere?"

"Hm." She looked over her shoulder, startling blue eyes flickering over his frame, before looking away once more. "No, I don't think so." Judging by the way her ears turned a deep shade she was lying. Unless his fly was down.

He severely hoped for the former.

A waiter twirled by, tray full of brightly colored drinks clinking merrily as he held it over Anya's head. She ducked enough to ensure no accident would came to pass. That's when he noticed the tattoo.

The curve of the vines, the slope of the lettering, and if he looked hard enough, he thought he could make out the outline of the skull printed over the nape of her neck through the fabric of her shirt. It dawned on him then. "You're the drummer from that band!" Anya froze, ahead of him, heels clacking to an abrupt stop. "Um, Tsugumi and the Girlfriends, right?"

She whipped around, seriously deadly ponytail almost taking out a busboy. Her eyes were pleading. "Please don't tell anyone."

"Wha-?"

"Look," She cast a quick glance around before leaning back in conspiratorially. "My boss is a real stickler for things like that, and if he finds out that I'm in a band- especially with the kind of music we play- I'll lose my job, because he thinks it'd ruin his image. So... _please_."

Harvar held up his hands, "Calm down. I wouldn't have said anything anyway."

With a small nod, she turned on her heel and continued to show him the way to his table. Rounding the corner of a plastic plant covered half-wall, Anya gestured to a secluded little table, a flickering candle squared away at it's center atop a lacy tablecloth. He murmured his thanks as Anya bent into a little bow, and clicked away. While his stomach churned, Harvar carefully slid into the seat across from Madeline, hands clammy and folded in his lap.

"Ah, so _you're_ the son of Mrs. Éclair." The woman said from behind the thick, leather bound menu that hid her face. Again, that feeling of familiarity washed over him, and he felt goosebumps race down his spine.

Harvar shifted in his seat, "It's Ms. Éclair, actually."

Madeline hummed, and he could see the top of her head tilt as she looked to the other page of delicacies. "Ah, divorcee? How sad." He tone was coated with just enough faux sympathy that he almost believed her.

"I suppose so," he murmured, extremely uncomfortable and actually wishing he was sweating back in his mother's kitchen. A waiter scuttled up to the table, notepad in hand and obscenely gaudy rings on three of his fingers. After taking their drink orders, the waiter retrieved their menus, and Madeline finally showed her face. Harvar thought that he might have been hallucinating, because there was no possible way that Madeline Gorgon of Shinigami Records, could be the shoddy singer Medusa. Her smile was gentle, and her thin brows raised just enough to give the illusion of surprise. "Is something the matter?"

"You're Medusa." He said simply, no question about it.

She tilted her head in acknowledgement. "That I am." At his confused face, she laughed softly, chin balanced on a perfectly manicured hand. "What? Just because I'm the CEO of a very large, international company, you think I can't have hobbies of my own?"

He scoffed. "Hobbies?"

"Something funny?"

"I'm sorry, I just find it amusing that you'd use local businesses as outlets for your 'hobbies'," he said sardonically, making air quotes with his fingers as he spoke. "Before turning around and buying them out from under the owners."

Madeline's face retained that infuriating smile, and Harvar was silently thankful that he had long since mastered the poker face. "No preamble then? How refreshing. In my line of work, most people would rather kiss my ass than come right out with what they're thinking." The waiter with horrible accessory taste returned with their glasses of water, being sure to make a quick escape without uttering another word.

Harvar leaned forward, resting his forearms against the table as he laced his fingers together. "Listen, all I want to know is what kind of shady, backdoor business Shinigami is running." Madeline's eyes narrowed slightly, but her smile only grew. "I mean, if my mother is losing her business and her home to a multi-billion dollar corporation, I might as well know what kind of people are taking it." His tone surprisingly remained light, his irritation carefully kept under wraps.

"I believe I'm sensing some sort of unresolved tension," she said while gesturing between the two of them.

It took every ounce of willpower he possessed not to snap, flip the table, and punch her in her perfect smug face. Harvar bit the inside of his cheek and breathed. "How perceptive of you," he deadpanned, hands clenching each other tightly. "Just-" He took in a deep breath, let it out and made eye contact with the woman across the table. "Tell me _something_."

Medusa shifted in her seat, crossing her legs beneath the table, the pointed toe of her high heel brushing his pant leg. "Alright, Harold- may I call you Harold?"

"You can, but my name is _Harvar_."

"Harvar, then. What do you want me to tell you? That I feel _bad_ for buying your mother's mediocre restaurant out from under her? That I'm going to go home tonight and cry because I did my job? Because those would all be lies, and I don't want to lie to you." His teeth grit together, but he gave her a look that he hoped would encourage her to go on. "You know what I _am_ going to do? I'm going to go home to my upscale penthouse apartment, and I _will_ cry, over my bank statements, as I dry my eyes and blow my nose with hundred dollar bills. Because I work hard at what I do, and if I have to be a snake in the grass to get my job done, then so be it." Madeline sat back in her seat, arms crossed over her chest as she stared him down.

"How does Shinigami feel about all of this?" Harvar asked with narrowed eyes, beyond fed up with the treacherous woman.

"Lets just say, what he doesnt know, wont hurt him." She let out a small, humorless laugh, and her tone was condescending as she said, "I mean, come on, now, Harold. He's the owner of an _international, multibillion dollar corporation._ He's much too busy to check how honest our minor deals are, and as long as he remains blissfully unaware, business will continue on as usual. Which, by the way, is going splendidly."

* * *

 _ **Two days until Battle of the Bands...**_

Harvar, Kilik, Jackie, and Kim were all crowded in Harvar's apartment, lounging on mismatched furniture while the TV buzzed with some forgotten cartoons that the twins had abandoned in favor of Harvar's Xbox. He could hear the kids' laughter and muffled garbling of the customizable characters on screen. Kilik drummed his fingers lazily against the worn upholstery of his up cycled lazy boy, window air conditioning unit humming noisily in an attempt to ward off the desert heat.

"Alright, Jackie grumbled from her spot beside Kim, her head pillowed in the other girl's lap while she tap tap tapped away on her phone. "We need to figure out what we're going to do for the battle."

"Where's this taking place, again?"

"Dark Side of the Moon- oh! The list of bands was just posted. Let's see...Tsugumi and the Girlfriends, Excalibur's Sword, Brothers Grimm, Reaper's Keepers, and - _dah,dah,dahhhh_ \- Bastards of Zeus."

Kilik pumped a drooping fist in the air, "Hell yeah." His voice was lacking the enthusiasm it normally held, the humidity draining away his excitement with ease.

Half dead and sagging on a ragged loveseat, Harvar spoke up. "I've been working on a song- we can practice tonight, and I'll have the lyrics finished by D-day." The band collectively moaned in an attempt to show excitement.

"Oh, fuck me." Jackie said with such palpable irritation Harvar's head popped up in interest as Kim lazily said 'not now, babe, it's too hot'.

"What?" Harvar asked, dread creeping into his gut.

"Take a wild guess who's looking to sign the winning band?" She said, tossing her phone carelessly across the room and into Harvar's lap. On the little glowing screen, an animated silver, pointed skull looked up at him merrily- promising a contract with Shinigami Records along with the thirty grand to the lucky winner.

"Motherfucker."

* * *

 _ **Half an hour until the Battle of the Bands…**_

The Dark Side of the Moon was absolutely booming, more so than usual. It was definitely beyond maximum capacity, people overflowing the loft/catwalk area above and the main floor below- some even going as far as sitting on the bar itself and on the various tables about the room. It wasn't hard to spot Shinigami's scout as he was dressed in an immaculate suit and was sporting three strange stripes in his hair.

Meanwhile backstage, the various bands scrambled around tuning instruments, applying makeup, and going through varying stages of panic. Harvar managed to grab a stressed stagehand in the middle of the commotion, quickly finding out that they were the last band to go on. Great. With an irritated sigh, Harvar meandered through the mob of musicians, managers, and stagehands until he found his bandmates- all of them huddled around a stainless steel vanity as the girls hurriedly applied makeup and Kilik desperately tried to cover a pimple with some strange combination of compact, blush, lipstick, and a lemon from the bar. Idly wondering how that mixture would work, Harvar stole a nearby stool and twirled beside the trio as they made up their faces, humming out the melody to their song. A busty woman who Harvar thought was the head bartender took to the stage, wiggling fingers at the audience with a flirtatious wink as she gripped the mic. "How everyone doin' tonight?!" She cooed into the device, smiling widely as the crowd cheered. "Now, I know you're all here to see our amazing performers duke it out for the _thirty thousand dollar cash prize and record deal with Shinigami Records_ ~!" Again, the crowd went wild. "But first, lets have a big Dark Side applause for the man himself, Death the Kid!" Overhead, a spotlight whirled across the many faces of the crowd until it landed on the man, a small smile on his face and his hand raised in a wave. "Now, without further ado, our first band of the night- Tsugumi and the Girlfriends!" She woman clapped as she moved from the stage, and Harvar made sure to send an encouraging wave Anya's way as the trio started onto the stage. Soon after, their familiar beat swam from the speakers, and there was the distinct sound of the crowds hooting and hollering as the thump of their sneakers reverberated through the floorboards. Their sound was good, almost reminding him of a band like Pushing Daisies or the SkullGirls.

Did he think it was good enough to win? Unfortunately for them, no, and it turned out he was right.

Kid eliminated them quickly, encouraging them to continue playing with kind words, but overall felt they were underdeveloped thus far. They left the stage with heads held high, and the energetic woman he now knew as Blair, took their place. She introduced the next so-called band, Excalibur's Sword, but it turned out to just be an alarmingly pale man in ridiculous 19th century style clothing reciting a personal monologue while the gaudy waiter from Harvar's meeting with Madeline sat behind him and randomly chimed a triangle. They were disqualified for obvious reasons.

Next came the Brothers Grimm, a band of two men who looked to be brothers, the oldest seeming to be on an electric violin and the youngest on a keyboard. There melody was haunting yet beautiful, and Harvar had truly began to believe that they had a fair chance at winning. That is, until flames shot from the man's violin and almost caught the stage on fire. They were immediately disqualified for reckless behavior and engagement, the sound of the younger brother scolding his sibling could be heard from sidestage. ("Goddammit Wes, I fuckin' _told_ you not to bring that one!" "Go big or go home little brother." "Now we _are_ going home, jackass." "Oh.")

Reaper's Keepers was up next, and damn him if they were anything short of amazing. With a tall blonde woman singing lead vocals, a willowy woman with straight black hair on keyboard, a shorter blonde who looked to be the lead's sister on guitar, and a ripped man with electric blue hair on drums, they looked every bit the part of a punk-rock movie esque band. Harvar's band, The Bastards of Zeus, had already gathered side stage- rocking and bouncing along to the music shamelessly as they awaited their turn on stage. After the second chorus, Kim cussed loudly and whirled on her bandmates. "The drummer is fucking the judge."

"What? How can you tell?"

She turned back to the stage, arms crossed over her chest as she glared daggers at the band. "Wait for the chorus, look at the drummer, then look at the judge." As if on cue, the lead singer's voice lilted into the chorus, the lyrics smooth and and obviously written passionately. The song would find itself at home in a man's 'getting laid' playlist alongside Barry White. The group looked to the blue haired drummer, watched as he made a _very_ lewd gesture with his tongue and drumstick, then looked to find Shinigami's scout blushing a furious shade of red.

"Awl _fuck._ " Kilik muttered, stomping his foot in frustration. "How in the hell are we supposed to beat them if they've got an obvious win?"

The look Jackie gave her bandmates was positively devilish as she said, "We play so damn good that the judge can't let us lose, even if he's banging the little drummer boy next door."

Kim grabbed the girl's face and planted a big kiss on her lips, slinging an arm around her shoulders as she pumped a fist in the air and shouted, "Damn fucking right! That's why I love this girl, c'mon, let's show these kids what a real band looks like." And so, they took to the stage just as Reaper's Keepers exited and Blair began to announce their name.

Once everyone slid into their positions, they all shared a look with one another- knowing exactly what all was on the line. With a nod, Harvar strummed the first chords, and Kim's voice swooned from the speakers as she hummed into her mic. Kilik gently drummed, stirring a soft sound from the instrument as Jackie added a deeper tone to the music. With his foot tapping, Harvar swayed in front of the mic stand, just as Kilik raised his drumsticks in the air and tapped them together. "One! Two! One, two, three, four!" His hands blurred into movement as they danced across the drum faces, the sound quick and heavy in a rocking beat. Jackie lended a hand as she tore across the strings of her bass, and Kim gave a laugh into the mic as Harvar started into the lyrics. The crowd was alive as it moved and swelled, people jumping and dancing to the catchy beat and they were already beginning to sing the lyrics back by the second bridge. With a glance at Kim and Jackie, they shared a nod and swung their guitars in arches around their bodies- the straps keeping them in position as the landed back in their player's hands. The crowd cheered and surged once again, their little stunt just the right amount of cool and not dangerous that they felt everyone would be pleased. With a huff, and an ending laugh from Kim, the song settled to a close, and the band bowed for the crowd.

* * *

Once all of Reaper's Keepers was rounded up and brought back on stage, the two bands huddled opposite to one another as they awaited the verdict from Kid. As he stood in the place between the two bands, he smoothed his suit jacket and said into the mic, "Now, tonight's winners are... _tied._ "

" _WHAT_?" The entire bar erupted into shouts of disbelief, and Kid held up his ring adorned hands for silence.

"That being said, the prizes will be split down the middle, as for what prize goes to whom, that will be decided between the bands themselves, as I would be happy to work with either competitor in the studio."

A heavy silence fell over the club as the two bands discussed amongst themselves- each sending their frontman to speak on their behalf. Luckily, it was a no brainer on Harvar's band's part.

"We want the money." Harvar said.

"We want the record deal." Liz said, as if it were obvious.

Kid clasped his hands together around the microphone, his features turning upwards in surprise. "Oh, well, that went much easier than expected." He turned around with a flourish and announced to the crowd what had been decided and they cheered once again. The sound slowly drowned out for Harvar as Kid turned back to him, checkbook in hand, and said as he filled out the first check, "Alright, thirty thousand dollars and it's all yours." Harvar nodded and took the slip of paper, his bandmates coming up behind him to catch a glimpse at the money. "What're you going to do with it, hm?" Kid asked not unkindly, and for some reason it made Harvar's blood run cold.

"I'm going to use it to buy back my mother's restaurant from you." He said simply, cooly, and Kim grasped his bicep tightly.

"Excuse me, what? My father prides himself on honesty and propriety, not buying small time businesses from beneath their owners."

Harvar laughed humorlessly, carefully folding the check and slipping it into his pocket. As he moved to brush past the well dressed man, he stopped, and cut Kid a look from the corner of his eye. "Looks to me like you have a snake in your midst."


End file.
